In late August 1993, 88-year-old Bernice Augusta Fagotte of Peoria hired Joseph Robert Miller for home repairs. Neighbors noticed she stopped collecting mail and newspapers weeks later, and her body was never recovered. Her maroon Oldsmobile was found abandoned near Miller’s residence on September 22, 1993. Officers reported a rug in the trunk, a knife with Miller’s fingerprints between the front seats, and dark stains on the back seat.

Around that time three women—Marcia Logue, Helen Dorrance, and Sandra L. Csesznegi—were found murdered in rural Peoria County. Logue was last seen entering a maroon car matching Fagotte’s vehicle. Items seized from Miller’s apartment included women’s clothing and bedding with apparent dried blood; forensic examiners linked fibers and hair from the apartment to the victims and reported debris in Logue’s mouth consistent with Miller’s pubic hair. Miller denied the killings but admitted the knife was his, saying he had dropped it.

Miller was arrested and charged in the three murders; he was not charged in Fagotte’s disappearance because her body was not found, though authorities consider him responsible based on the circumstantial evidence. If anyone knew Bernice Fagotte or saw her car in September 1993, can you share what you remember?